Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People

People
on the Move

N° 105, December 2007

Migration,

an opportunity for
the ecumene*

Cardinal Renato Raffaele MARTINO

President of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral
Care

of Migrants and Itinerant People

Recently, a book entitled “Globus. Per una teoria
storico-universale dello spazio” (Globus. Towards a historical-universal
theory of space), a translation from German, was published in Italy. In
this volume, the author, Franz Rosenzweig, makes a rapid but
well-studied, original and significant reconstruction of the whole world
history. The first part of the publication is entitled “Ecumene”, seen
from the point of view of relationships between earthly forces that push
towards the unification of the world.

“If millennia were needed for us to acquire
theoretical awareness of the spherical form of the earth,” the author
affirms, “we cannot be surprised by how slow world history walks towards
unity of the globe. Yet, God created only one sky and one earth.
Ecumenism is the final goal of humankind’s journey,” a sign of which is
migration, indeed an opportunity for the ecumene.

Today, in fact, migration is one of the most
important and most complex challenges of our modern world. Consequently,
social transformation, caused by welcoming immigrants, is discussed in
public meetings, and the question of “migration” appears as one of the
top issues in the international agenda.

The migration phenomenon is therefore analyzed in
relation to development. Migrants’ contribution to the labor market is
studied, leading to the conclusion that they are important for world
economy. A witness to this is the First Global Forum on Migration and
Development, recently held in Brussels, last July 9 to 11.

In spite of this, however, many Governments are
adopting more restrictive measures to counter immigration, especially if
irregular. Researchers on the migration phenomenon, on their part, are
for the opening of frontiers, not simply to solve contingent problems,
but to situate the process in a global scenario. Migration has indeed
become a structural phenomenon. This does not mean, however, that a
vision of a “total” and “indiscriminate” freedom to immigrate is being
adopted. It is rather the task of Governments to regulate the magnitude
and the form of migration flows. They should, however, take common good
into consideration, so that immigrants would be worthily welcomed, and
the population of the receiving countries would not be put in a
condition that would lead them to reject the newcomers. This would have
unfavorable consequences both for immigrants and the local population,
as well as for relations between peoples. Naturally national common good
must be considered in the context of universal common good. This brings
us back to that vision of the “ecumene” that I mentioned at the
beginning.

Our task, however, is that of identifying facts
and aspects of migration that would help us understand the range of the
phenomenon itself. This will enable us to interpret this “sign of the
times”[1]
from a Christian perspective, and to offer our pastoral service to the
world of human mobility in its totality, in its universality. And for
you, this is true for Europe.

There has always been solicitude on the part of
the Catholic Church for migration – we have to take note of this.[2]
Involvement in various forms confirms its ability to interpret this
rapidly changing reality. Active ecclesial commitment, especially at a
pastoral level, naturally includes socio-humanitarian action so that the
foreigner would be accepted and integrated in society, through an
itinerary leading to authentic communion, where there is due respect for
diversity. It is however necessary to remember that rights and duties
come together, also for migrants.

Regarding respect for the fundamental rights of
the human person, hence also of those who are involved in human
mobility, the Catholic Church is continuously committed to this at
various levels and in different areas. Specific initiatives, Messages of
the Holy Father, action to build awareness among international
organizations and governments of migrants’ countries of origin, transit
and destination, define the Church’s “strategy”. This is based on the
central principle and “sacredness” of the human person[3],
to be upheld particularly when he/she is unprotected or marginalized.
This “brings to light certain important theological and pastoral
conclusions. These are: […] the defence of the rights of migrants, both
men and women, and their children; [the question of the migrant family];
the ecclesial and missionary dimension of migration; the reappraisal of
the apostolate of the laity; the value of cultures in the work of
evangelisation; the protection and appreciation of minority groups in
the Church; the importance of dialogue both inside and outside the
Church; and the specific contribution of emigration to world peace” (EMCC
n. 27). In all this, we can clearly see a basis for an ecumenical
commitment.

Indeed the recent position of the Holy See
regarding migration shows that attention is given to the continuous
transformation of the phenomenon of human mobility and to the current
needs of people in contemporary society. This is because it wants “to
respond to the new spiritual and pastoral needs of migrants” bearing in
mind “the ecumenical aspect of the phenomenon, owing to the presence
among migrants of Christians not in full communion with the Catholic
Church, and also the inter-religious aspect, owing to the increasing
number of migrants of other religions, in particular Muslims” (EMCC
n. 3)[4].
We cannot ignore the fact that “recent times have witnessed a growing
increase in the presence of immigrants of other religions in
traditionally Christian countries” (EMCC n. 59). The great
diversity of immigrants’ cultural and religious origin poses new
challenges and leads towards new goals, putting dialogue at the heart of
pastoral care in the world of migration. Certainly all this is part of
the mission of the Church.

The Instruction Erga migrantes caritas Christi
carefully proposes programs that are appropriate for the various stages
in the life of the migrant. It distinguishes “between assistance
in a general sense (a first, short-term welcome), true welcome in
the full sense (longer-term projects) and integration (an aim to
be pursued constantly over a long period and in the true sense of the
word)” (n. 42). In this case, it is important to give a sensible
direction to an issue of great significance. I am referring to the
difficult concept of integration, and its even more difficult
application, keeping in mind also its ecumenical and interreligious
aspects, particularly in societies hosting migrants. This concept is
being seriously analyzed. We refuse to see it as a process of
assimilation, but stress the aspect of cultural meeting and legitimate
exchange. We are practically insisting on a concept of intercultural
societies, meaning those that are capable of interacting and producing
mutual enrichment, going beyond multiculturalism, that can be contented
with a mere juxtaposition of cultures[5].

This gradual itinerary – as I was saying –
provides, first of all, for “assistance or ‘first welcome’” (EMCC
n. 43), but this is not enough to express the authentic vocation to
Christian agape, also because it might be confused with
philanthropy.

As a result, the Instruction offers a wider
horizon, providing for “acts of welcome in its full sense, which aim at
the progressive integration and self-sufficiency of the immigrant” (ibid.).
Here, too, we cannot fail to consider the ecumenical and interreligious
dimensions.

In his Message for the World Day of Migrants and
Refugees this year, Benedict XVI stated that the Church, through its
various Institutions and Associations, “has opened Centers where
migrants are listened to, Houses where they are welcomed, offices for
services offered to persons and families, with other initiatives set up
to respond to the growing needs in this field”.[6]

Also through these services in the context of
human mobility, the Catholic Church offers its assistance to everyone,
without distinction of religion or nationality, respecting everyone’s
inalienable dignity as a human person, created to the image of God and
redeemed by the Blood of Christ.

In assisting migrants, therefore, it is possible
to deepen ecumenical dialogue since contact with those among them who
belong to other Churches or Ecclesial Communities gives “new
possibilities of living ecumenical fraternity in practical day-to-day
life and of achieving greater reciprocal understanding between Churches
and ecclesial communities, something far from facile irenicism or
proselytism” (EMCC n. 56). In fact, when migrants arrive in a
place with a Catholic majority, the first meeting point should be
hospitality and solidarity, within the context of “an authentic
culture of welcome (cf. EEu 101 and 103) capable of accepting
the truly human values of the immigrants over and above any difficulties
caused by living together with persons who are different (cf. EEu
85, 112 and PaG 65)” (EMCC n. 39).

Therefore “the entire Church in the host country
must feel concerned and engaged regarding immigrants. This means that
local Churches must rethink pastoral care, programming it […
appropriately for] today’s new multicultural and pluri-religious
context. With the help of social and pastoral workers, the local
population should be made aware of the complex problems of migration and
the need to oppose baseless suspicions and offensive prejudices against
foreigners” (EMCC n. 41).

However, ecumenical dialogue does not stop there.
It could also take the form of a specifically ecumenical cooperation,
whereby resources are pooled and a common Christian witness is given
(cf. Directory for the Application of Principles and Norms on
Ecumenism, n. 162). Indeed the different Churches and ecclesial
communities are particularly intent on welcoming and accompanying all
migrants, in the pastoral sense, especially when alongside the flow of
regular migrants, there are irregular migrants who are a cause for
concern and are usually and unjustly blamed for crimes. Also, there are
unscrupulous evildoers, who speculate on the tragic situation of people
and promote the trafficking of human beings. Their presence increases
xenophobia and at times provokes manifestations of racism (cf. EMCC
nos. 29 e 41). All this can make the ecumenical commitment in favor of
migrants more difficult.

The Church is called
upon to open a dialogue with everyone, but this “dialogue should be
conducted and implemented in the conviction that the Church is the
ordinary means of salvation and that she alone possesses the fullness of
the means of salvation”(EMCC 59). At the
same time, migrants of other religions “should be helped insofar as
possible to preserve a transcendent view of life”
(ibid.).

There are surely some values in common between the
Christian faith and other beliefs, but it is necessary to take into
consideration the fact that “beside these points of agreement there are,
however, also divergencies, some of which have to do with legitimate
acquisitions of modern life and thought” (EMCC n. 66). On the
part of the migrant, therefore, the first step to take towards the host
society is to respect the laws and the values on which that society is
founded, including religious ones. If this is not done, then integration
would just be an empty word.

The Church is also called to live fully its own
identity, without renouncing to give witness to its own faith, also in
view of respectfully proclaiming it (cf. EMCC n. 9). Thus,
dialogue with others “requires Catholic communities receiving immigrants
to appreciate their own identity even more, prove their loyalty to
Christ, know the contents of the faith well, rediscover their missionary
calling and thus commit themselves to bear witness for Jesus the Lord
and His gospel. This is the necessary prerequisite for the correct
attitude of sincere dialogue, open and respectful of all but at the same
time neither naïve nor ill-equipped” (EMCC n. 60).[7]

Finally, it is necessary to take into account the
important principle of reciprocity[8],
“understood not merely as an attitude for making claims but as a
relationship based on mutual respect and on justice in juridical and
religious matters. Reciprocity is also an attitude of heart and spirit
that enables us to live together everywhere with equal rights and
duties. Healthy reciprocity will urge each one to become an ‘advocate’
for the rights of minorities when his or her own religious community is
in the majority. In this respect we should also recall the numerous
Christian migrants in lands where the majority of the population is not
Christian and where the right to religious freedom is severely
restricted or repressed” (EMCC n. 64).

It remains true, however, that solidarity,
cooperation, international interdependence and the equitable
distribution of the goods of the earth show the need to operate also in
ecumenical communion, or rather, with a vision of “ecumene” in the broad
sense of the term. This has to be done in depth and forcefully,
especially in the areas where migration flows originate, so that the
inequalities that induce people, individually or collectively, to leave
their own natural and cultural environment would be overcome (cf.
EMCC nos. 4; 8-9; 39-43). On its part, the Catholic Church will not
stop encouraging everyone, but particularly the members of Christian
communities, to be authentically available and open to others, including
migrants, as it affirms that “notwithstanding the repeated failures of
human projects, noble as they may have been, Christians, roused by the
phenomenon of mobility, [should] become aware of their call to be always
and repeatedly a sign of fraternity and communion in the world, by
respecting differences and practising solidarity, in their ethics of
meeting others” (EMCC n. 102).

To conclude, we have to acknowledge that migration
is a process in constant evolution. It will continue to be present in
the development of societies and will bring us more and more into an
intercultural world, where legitimate diversity will be lived also in
the context of ecumenical and interreligious dialogue.

[4]
In 2004, the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of
Migrants and Itinerant People published the Instruction Erga
migrantes caritas Christi: AAS XCVI (2004), 762-822
(see also People on the Move XXXVI, 95, 2004, and
website:

[5]
Issues related to this important chapter of the pastoral care of
human mobility were studied more in-depth and then published in
Pontificio Consiglio
della Pastorale per i Migranti e gli Itineranti (ed.),
Migranti e pastorale d’accoglienza
(Quaderni Universitari, Comments to the Second Part of EMCC),
Libreria Editrice Vaticana,
Vatican City 2006.

[6]Benedict XVI,
Message for the World Day of Migrants and Refugees 2007:
http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/messages/peace/documents/hf_ben-xvi_mes_20061208_xl-world-day-peace_
en.html.

[7]
Cf. Proceedings of the XVII Plenary Session of our Pontifical
Council, held from May 15 to 17, 2006, on the theme «Migration
and Itinerancy from and towards Islamic majority
countries»: People on the Move XXXVIII (101 Suppl.,
2006). Specifically regarding interreligious dialogue, see pp.
187-224. Particularly important is n. 11 of the conclusions and
recommendations: «It was also deemed vital to distinguish
between what the receiving societies can and cannot tolerate in
Islamic culture, what can be respected or shared with regard to
followers of other religions (see EMCC 65 and 66), and to
have the possibility of giving indications in this regard also
to policymakers, towards a proper formulation of civil
legislation, with due respect for each one’s competence»:
ibid., p. 74.

[8]
Also Benedict XVI mentioned this in his Address to the
participants in the aforementioned XVII Plenary Session:
loc. cit., p. 5.